Her career in television took off in 2001 with jobs as the host of Talk Soup and the reality-dating series The Fifth Wheel, although Talk Soup was cancelled the following year and Tyler left The Fifth Wheel in 2002, to pursue other interests. Tyler has devoted a significant amount of her time to independent projects, including a role in the play Moose Mating, for which she received an NAACP Image Award. She also wrote, directed, and starred in the independent short film The Whipper.

Moving into acting, Tyler played the first and only African American recurring character on Friends. She took part in the ninth and tenth seasons. She followed this up with guest spots on CSI: Miami and Nip/Tuck, as well as balancing recurring roles on both CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and 24 during the 2004-2005 TV season. She also filmed her own sitcom pilot for CBS, which wasn't picked up. She has guest-starred in Mad tv

Following her regular role on the CBS series Ghost Whisperer during